Mad cow pleas

The Minorcan Farmers Association yesterday pleaded with the Balearic Agriculture Ministry and the Minorca Council for Agriculture not to slaughter all the cattle on the farm where the second case of mad cow was confirmed last month. The association says that European Union directives on mad cow do not call for the entire herd to be culled and that those countries within the Union which have carried out such action, have done so of their own free will with no scientific evidence to back up their actions. Farmers claim that the local authorities have ordered the mass cull for “publicity” reasons to try and convince consumers that mad cow in under control. The government has yet to name a date for when the herds of cattle of the two Minorca farms where mad cow was detected, are to be slaughtered and farmers are calling for the authorities not to go ahead with the mass slaughter as it will hurt the farming community and probably force the farmers involved out of business.